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Avoid Aberration Follow The Standard - Part Two

Spiritual entities dissipate information or messages that reveal their core values to the public and they expect the public to know them by these messages they preach. So their messages invariably become their identity because they point to what they are and represents. Also, it is important to point out that it is their message that brings people and as many that they bring among them are established by the same message. However, it is important to note that Christianity as a spiritual entity has its own message and this message is called the message of salvation. This implies that the right Christian message should be that message that can save people from condemnation and it is rooted in the teaching of the early Apostles. To ascertain the right message therefore it is worthy to align any message preached by anyone with what was preached by the early Apostles and if such message doesn’t align properly it should be discarded.

On this note, it is important for us to start looking at what the early Apostles preached and align them with what the gospel is today. Like stated earlier, the gospel is the message of salvation, which implies that it is geared towards saving man from dome or destruction. The Christian message therefore, must be a message that is capable of saving a soul or souls if accepted in the heart of the receiver. The unique purpose of the Christian message is purely to save a dying or better still to reconcile man back to his Creator; anything negating this purpose is not the message but an addendum.

Jesus speaking in the gospel of John made it known to us what the message is and He said as I quote “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). The quotation clearly states that God gave because of His Love for the world and in it there’s a reciprocal reactions as regards to its acceptance or repudiation. There are two offers inherent in the message and these offers are depended on the response of the receiver of the message. The onus is not on the one who has made the offer to decide what the receiver should but it is laid on the receiver to decide what to do with the message. And whatever he does with the message decides what his destination and destiny should be. Is as a result of this, Jesus commissioned His disciples to go preach this gospel all over the world to sundry tribes and races.

Notice that before He commissioned them to go preach this gospel, He asked them to wait in Jerusalem because they shall receive power from above to do this job. This implies that this job is not a mere job but one that needs to be certified with power from above for its efficiency and approval. This must be approved with the seal and power from above and the sealer is The Holy Spirit. Let’s see what Jesus told them about this message, “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” (John 16:12-13). The revealer of what to preach is the Holy Spirit and when He comes He will make the content of the message known to the disciples and that is why He asked them to wait in Jerusalem.

On the Pentecost day the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, and they were moved to preach and what they preached was nothing but Christ. This affirms the words of Jesus that the arrival of the Holy Spirit would mean His revelation. The revelation of Christ was not a New Testament thing but the deduction of the Holy Spirit from the writings of the Scripture as pass unto the Apostles (Ephesians 3:5). It is factual to say that the Apostles caught the revelation and the message they had was Christ only and nothing was added. They preached Christ from every Scripture verse(s) of the Old Testament. “And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.” (Act 8:34-35). In the crusade and personal evangelism the message didn’t change “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” (Acts 8:4-5).

Apostle Paul in his rendering of the gospel declared that “But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;” (1 Corinthians 1:23) “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” (2 Corinthians 2:2). The gospel Paul preached was a revelation from the scripture and was not taught him by any man (Romans 16:25, Galatians 1:12). The message of Christ was consistent in their mouth and they didn’t veer from it and even when some among them started going astray they reminded them of what the gospel is and that is “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures” (1Corinthians 15:1-4).

This however, implies that preaching of Christ means to preach His death burial and resurrection, anything outside this, is not the gospel! Therefore, anything preached that is not within the periphery of His death, burial and resurrection is another gospel not the gospel. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation, because salvation is received by hearing the message of Christ. Another gospel is not the power of God unto salvation and therefore anyone who has believed another gospel though a ‘Christian’ is not saved! So the Apostles preached the gospel which is the message of Christ. As they were preaching the message of Christ, God was with them and was confirming their message with signs “And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen” (Mark 16:20). It is interesting to know that the Lord was confirming the word (message) the preached not them, which implies that the messengers were not considered important than the message, therefore, instead of confirming the messengers the Lord confirmed the message.

The order of day in the days of the Apostles was that they preached Christ and people were saved into Kingdom of God. They didn’t preach themselves, they didn’t preach their father in the Lord, they didn’t preach angels, they didn’t preach how one can become rich because he believed in Christ, they didn’t preach how someone’s enemy can be destroyed, they didn’t preach altar verses altar, they didn’t preach family foundational problem, they didn’t preach generational curses and mostly they didn’t preach hell fire rather they preached Christ through the ministry they have received. The ministry they received and ministered is called the New Testament ministry which is the ministry of the Spirit which gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6). For this reason through their ministry life was given to many who were dead. So when Christ is preached the dead men are quickened unto life “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:1-2). When Christ is preached sin is judged and righteousness is established and sons are brought unto glory.

Dishearteningly, the reverse is the case in our nowadays message, we have left Christ, and we are preaching another gospel which is not the gospel, “For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.” (2 Corinthians 11:4). Another gospel is adding or attaching something to the gospel of Christ, for instance, Christ plus the Law of Moses, I mean observation of the provisions of the law. Inspiring believers to have faith in physical ordinances which are things that perishes in the using (Colossians 2:20-23), like handkerchief, oil, water, salt, honey, sand from the family compound, sowing monetary seed in order to become millionaires, etc. And these have become the order of the day in our Churches today. The adverse effect of these things is that it allows and gives opportunity for the believers to attach their faith on these and believing in their potency and their eyes are taken away from Christ. In other words, the situation in the Church is how Apostle Paul describes it “And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.” (Colossians 2:19).

In the church of Jesus Christ, Christ should be the center stage and all focus should be on Him. Therefore, every message should be centered on what He has done to sin and delivered man from condemnation. That is to say that every message should be how He has saved man and the position He has placed man and how He’s coming back to receive man in glory.

Do let us know how this article has helped you grow spiritually and if you do have any question do not hesitate to ask us for better clarity.

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